Warsaw: Poland's right-wing government is facing a rebellion after the country's courts and several city councils sided with the Constitutional Court in a bitter dispute with the ruling party.
The Supreme Court -- which supervises Poland's system of lower courts -- ruled Tuesday that rulings by Constitutional Court remain binding, even though the government has effectively blocked its decisions since March.
The capital Warsaw, Lodz in central Poland and Poznan in the west followed the Supreme Court's lead, saying their local councils would continue to enact decisions by the Constitutional Court.
On Wednesday, the cities of Bydgoszcz and Slupsk followed suit.
The row comes as concern rises in the European Union that reforms to the courts and public media by Poland's Law and Justice party (PiS), which swept to power in November, put democracy and the rule of law at risk.
Three former Polish presidents accused the PiS of destroying the constitution, urging citizens to "defend democracy" in an appeal published Monday.
In January the European Commission launched an unprecedented probe into whether changes to Poland's Constitutional Court violate the EU's democracy rules and merit punitive measures.
Earlier this month, the European Parliament issued a sharp rebuke to Poland over the legal shake-up, saying it "poses a danger to democracy, human rights and the rule of law".
Poland has dismissed the criticism as interference in its internal affairs.
The government has refused to publish a March 9 judgement by the Constitutional Court that would strike down the changes, or any rulings that have followed it.
The PiS has dismissed the Supreme Court's rebellion against the government, describing it as "anarchy".
Deputy Justice Minister Patryk Jaki said "snobbish lawyers" were behind the rebellion and that they had pressured judges in the lower courts to go along with them.
Beata Mazurek, a spokeswoman for the PiS parliamentary group, said: "It's anarchy inspired by the opposition and people linked to the old regime.
"It's sick, it endangers our democracy."
The liberal Nowoczesna opposition party has gathered more than 100,000 signatures on a petition urging the government to break the stalemate and publish the decisions of the Constitutional Court.
AFP
